February 6
Events *46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats the combined army of Pompeian followers and Numidians under Metellus Scipio and Juba at Thapsus. * 337 - Julius I is elected pope. *1685 - James II of England and VII of Scotland becomes King upon the death of his brother Charles II. *1778 - American Revolutionary War: In Paris the Treaty of Alliance and the Treaty of Amity and Commerce are signed by the United States and France signaling official recognition of the new republic. *1788 - Massachusetts becomes the sixth state to ratify the United States Constitution. *1815 - New Jersey grants the first American railroad charter to a John Stevens. *1817 - The Argentinian San Martín crosses the Andes with an army in order to liberate Chile from Spanish rule. *1819 - Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles founds Singapore. *1820 - The first 86 African American immigrants sponsored by the American Colonization Society started a settlement in present-day Liberia. *1840 - Signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, founding document of New Zealand. *1843 - The first minstrel show in the United States The Virginia Minstrels opens (Bowery Amphitheatre in New York City). *1862 - American Civil War: Ulysses S. Grant gives the United States its first victory of the war, by capturing Fort Henry, known as the Battle of Fort Henry. *1899 - Spanish-American War: The Treaty of Paris, a peace treaty between the United States and Spain is ratified by the United States Senate. *1900 - The international arbitration court at The Hague is created when the Netherlands' Senate ratifies an 1899 peace conference decree. *1922 - Achille Ratti becomes Pope Pius XI. * 1922 - The Washington Naval Treaty was signed in Washington, limiting the naval armaments of United States, Britain, Japan, France, and Italy. *1933 - The 20th Amendment to the United States Constitution goes into effect. *1934 - February 6, 1934 political crisis in France. The far right leagues rally in front of the Palais Bourbon, an attempted coup against the Third Republic. *1936 - Olympic Games: Winter Olympic Games - IV Olympic Winter Games open in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. *1951 - The Broker, a Pennsylvania Railroad passenger train derails near Woodbridge Township. The accident kills 85 people and injures over 500 more. The wreck is one of the worst rail disasters in American history. *1952 - Elizabeth II becomes Queen upon the death of her father George VI. At the exact moment of succession, she was in a treehouse at the Treetops Hotel in Kenya. *1952 - Elizabeth II is proclaimed Queen of Canada at Rideau Hall, Ottawa, Ontario. *1958 - Eight players of Manchester United were killed in the Munich air disaster. *1959 - Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments filed the first patent for an integrated circuit. * 1959 - At Cape Canaveral, Florida, the first successful test firing of a Titan intercontinental ballistic missile is accomplished. *1971 - Apollo program: Apollo 14 Mission - Alan Shepard becomes the first person to hit a golf ball on the Moon. *1978 - The Blizzard of 1978, one of the worst Nor'easters in New England history, hit the region, with sustained winds of 65 mph and snowfall of 4" an hour. *1992 - The Saami people of the Nordic countries have an official day celebrating their existence. *1996 - A Birgen Air Boeing 757 crashes into the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Dominican killing 189. *1998 - Washington National Airport is renamed Ronald Reagan National Airport. *1998 - In Corsica, the prefect Claude Erignac is assassinated in Ajaccio, presumably by Yvan Colonna. *2004 - In Russia, a suicide-attack in a Moscow metro kills 40 commuters, and injures a hundred and twenty-nine. The blast is blamed on Chechen separatist groups. *2006 - The Conservative Party of Canada becomes a minority government in Canada's Parliament, replacing the Liberals after 13 years in power. Stephen Harper becomes the 22nd Prime Minister of Canada. *2007 - One of the two Denial-of-service attacks in history is mounted against the DNS Backbone servers. Births *1577 - Beatrice Cenci, Italian noblewoman (d. 1599) *1608 - Antonio Vieira, Portuguese writer (d. 1697) *1611 - Chongzhen Emperor, Emperor of China (d. 1644) *1639 - Daniel Georg Morhof, German writer and scholar (d. 1691) *1664 - Mustafa II, Ottoman Sultan (d, 1703) *1665 - Queen Anne of England (d. 1714) *1695 - Nicolaus II Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician (d. 1726) *1732 - Charles Lee, General in the American Revolution (d. 1782) *1744 - Pierre-Joseph Desault, French anatomist and surgeon (d. 1795) *1748 - Adam Weishaupt, founder of the Bavarian Illuminati (d. 1811) *1756 - Aaron Burr, 3rd Vice President of the United States (d. 1836) *1757 - Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz, Polish scholar and statesman. (d. 1841) *1811 - Henry George Liddell, father of the Alice in Alice in Wonderland (d. 1898) *1833 - James Ewell Brown Stuart, American Confederate general (d. 1864) * 1833 - José María de Pereda, Spanish novelist (b. 1906) *1834 - Ema Puksec, Croatian singer (d. 1889) *1838 - Sir Henry Irving, British actor (d. 1905) * 1838 - Yisrael Meir Kagan, Chofetz Chayim (d. 1933) *1853 - Ignacij Klemenčič, Slovenian physicist (d. 1901) *1887 - Josef Frings, German Archbishop of Cologne (d. 1978) *1875 - Leonid Gobyato, Russian general (d. 1915) *1892 - William Parry Murphy, American physician, Nobel laureate (d. 1987) *1894 - Eric Partridge, New Zealand lexicographer (d. 1979) *1895 - Babe Ruth, American baseball player (d. 1948) *1897 - Louis Buchalter, Jewish American mobster (d. 1944) *1899 - Ramón Novarro, Mexican actor (d. 1968) *1901 - Ben Lyon, American actor (d. 1979) *1902 - George Brunies, American musician (d. 1974) *1903 - Claudio Arrau, Chilean-born pianist (d. 1991) *1905 - Władysław Gomułka, Polish leader (d. 1982) *1908 - Amintore Fanfani, Italian politician (d. 1999) *1910 - Irmgard Keun, German author (d. 1982) * 1910 - Carlos Marcello, Tunisian-born gangster (d. 1993) *1911 - Ronald Reagan, 40th President of the United States (d. 2004) *1912 - Eva Braun, German mistress of Adolf Hitler (d. 1945) *1913 - Mary Leakey, British anthropologist (d. 1996) *1914 - Thurl Ravenscroft, American voice actor (d. 2005) *1916 - John Crank, British mathematician (d. 2006) *1917 - Zsa Zsa Gabor, Hungarian-born actress *1918 - Lothar-Günther Buchheim, German author (d. 2007) *1922 - Bill Johnston, Australian cricketer * 1922 - Patrick Macnee, British actor * 1922 - Denis Norden, British television personality *1924 - Billy Wright, English former footballer (d. 1994) *1925 - Pramoedya Ananta Toer, Indonesian author (d. 2006) *1926 - Haskell Wexler, American cinematographer * 1926 - Walker Edmiston, American actor (d. 2007) *1929 - Pierre Brice, French actor *1931 - Rip Torn, American actor * 1931 - Mamie Van Doren, American actress *1932 - Camilo Cienfuegos, Cuban revolutionary (d. 1959) * 1932 - François Truffaut, French film director (d. 1984) *1933 - Leslie Crowther, British comedian (d. 1996) *1934 - Bernard Erhard, American voice actor (d. 2000) *1936 - Kent Douglas, Canadian ice hockey player * 1936 - J. Howard Marshall III, American businessman *1939 - Mike Farrell, American actor * 1939 - Orlando Parga, Vice President of the Puerto Rico Senate *1940 - Tom Brokaw, American news anchorman * 1940 - Jimmy Tarbuck, British comedian *1941 - Gigi Perreau, American actress *1942 - Sarah Brady, American gun-control activist *1943 - Fabian, American singer * 1943 - Gayle Hunnicutt, American actress *1944 - Michael Tucker, American actor * 1944 - Christine Boutin, French politician * 1944 - Willie Tee, American singer and songwriter (d. 2007)) *1945 - Bob Marley, Jamaican musician (d. 1981) *1946 - Jim Turner, American politician * 1946 - Kate McGarrigle, Canadian singer and songwriter *1949 - Jim Sheridan, Irish film director *1950 - Natalie Cole, American singer *1951 - Marco Antônio, Brazilian footballer * 1951 - Jacques Villeret, French film actor (d. 2005) *1952 - Ricardo Lavolpe, Argentine football coach *1955 - Michael Pollan, American journalist *1957 - Kathy Najimy, American actress and comedienne * 1957 - Robert Townsend, American actor *1958 - Barry Miller, American actor * 1958 - Cecily Adams, American actress (d. 2004) *1959 - Ken Nelson, English record producer *1960 - Megan Gallagher, American actress *1961 - Bill Lester, American racecar driver *1962 - Axl Rose, American singer (Guns N' Roses) *1963 - Kevin Trudeau, American entrepreneur *1966 - Rick Astley, British singer *1967 - Izumi Sakai, Japanese singer (Zard) (d. 2007) * 1967 - Anita Cochran, American singer *1968 - Akira Yamaoka, Japanese composer * 1968 - Adolfo Valencia, Colombian footballer *1970 - Per Frandsen, Danish footballer * 1970 - Kitty Yung, American pornographic actress *1971 - Dana Eskelson, American actress * 1971 - Brad Hogg, Australian cricket player * 1971 - Brian Stepanek, American actor *1972 - David Binn, American football player *1975 - Svend-Allan Sørensen, Danish artist * 1975 - Tomoko Kawase, Japanese singer * 1975 - Brett Hawke, Australian swimmer *1976 - Kim Zmeskal, American gymnast * 1976 - Colin Teo, Singaporean Grand Prix driver * 1976 - Tanja Frieden, Swiss snowboarder *1977 - Jason Euell, English-born footballer *1979 - Dan Bălan, Moldovan singer and musician O-Zone *1980 - Mamiko Noto, Japanese seiyu * 1980 - Kim Poirier, Canadian actress * 1980 - Luke Ravenstahl, American politician *1981 - Jens Lekman, Swedish musician * 1981 - Calum Best, American model *1982 - Alice Eve, English actress *1983 - Brodie Croyle, American football player * 1983 - Myron Wolf Child, Canadian politician * 1983 - Jamie Whincup, Australian racing driver *1984 - Darren Bent, English footballer * 1984 - Daisy Marie, American pornographic actress * 1984 - Piret Järvis, Estonian singer *1985 - Kris Humphries, American basketball player * 1985 - Yang Yu, Chinese swimmer *1986 - Brendan Taylor, Zimbabwean cricketer * 1986 - Alice Greczyn, American actress *1988 - Allison Holker, American dancer *1989 - Craig Cathcart, Irish football *2004 - Princess Louise of Belgium Deaths * 891 - Photius, Patriarch of Constantinople *1378 - Jeanne de Bourbon, wife of Charles V of France (b. 1338) *1497 - Johannes Ockeghem, Flemish composer (b. c. 1410) *1515 - Aldus Manutius, Italian printer *1585 - Edmund Plowden, English legal scholar (b. 1518) *1593 - Jacques Amyot, French writer (b. 1513) * 1593 - Emperor Ogimachi of Japan (b. 1517) *1617 - Prospero Alpini, Italian scientist (b. 1553) *1685 - King Charles II of England (b. 1630) *1740 - Pope Clement XII (b. 1652) *1775 - William Dowdeswell, English politician (b. 1721) *1783 - Capability Brown, English landscape gardener (b. 1716) *1793 - Carlo Goldoni, Italian playwright (b. 1707) *1807 - John Reid, British army general and composer (b. 1721) *1816 - Maria Ludwika Rzewuska, Polish szlachcianka (b. 1744) *1833 - Pierre André Latreille, French entomologist (b. 1762) *1834 - Richard Lemon Lander, British explorer (b. 1804) *1855 - Josef Munzinger, Swiss Federal Councilor (b. 1791) *1899 - Leo von Caprivi, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1831) * 1899 - Prince Alfred of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (b. 1874) *1916 - Rubén Darío, Nicaraguan writer (b. 1867) *1918 - Gustav Klimt, Austrian painter (b. 1862) *1927 - Sam Maguire, Irish Republican and Gaelic footballer (b. 1879) *1938 - Marianne von Werefkin, Russian-Swiss painter (b. 1860) *1950 - Georges Imbert, Alsatian chemist (b. 1884) *1952 - George VI of the United Kingdom (b. 1895) *1958 - David Pegg, English footballer (b. 1935) * 1958 - Tommy Taylor, English footballer (b. 1932) * 1958 - Geoff Bent, English footballer (b. 1932) * 1958 - Roger Byrne, English footballer (b. 1929) * 1958 - Eddie Colman, English footballer (b. 1936) * 1958 - Mark Jones, English footballer (b. 1933) * 1958 - Frank Swift, English footballer and journalist (b. 1913) * 1958 - Walter Crickmer, Manchester United club secretary *1963 - Abd el-Krim, Moroccan politician *1964 - Emilio Aguinaldo, First President of the 1st Philippines Republic (b. 1869) *1967 - Martine Carol, French film actress (b. 1920) *1976 - Vince Guaraldi, American musician (b. 1928) *1981 - Hugo Montenegro, American film music composer and orchestra leader (b. 1925) * 1981 - Frederika of Hanover, Queen Consort of Greece (b. 1917) *1985 - James Hadley Chase, English writer (b. 1906) *1986 - Frederick Coutts, Salvation Army general (b. 1899) * 1986 - Minoru Yamasaki, American architect (b. 1912) *1989 - Chris Gueffroy, last person killed escaping over the Berlin wall (b. 1968) * 1989 - Barbara Tuchman, American historian (b. 1912) * 1989 - André Cayatte, French filmmaker (b. 1909) *1991 - Salvador Luria, Italian-born biologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1912) * 1991 - Danny Thomas, American singer, comedian, and actor (b. 1914) *1993 - Arthur Ashe, American tennis player (b. 1943) *1994 - Joseph Cotten, American actor (b. 1905) * 1994 - Jack Kirby, American comic book writer (b. 1917) *1995 - James Merrill, American poet (b. 1926) *1996 - Guy Madison, American actor (b. 1922) *1997 - Roger Laurent, Belgian racing driver (b. 1913) *1998 - Falco, Austrian singer (b. 1957) * 1998 - Carl Wilson, American musician (The Beach Boys) (b. 1946) * 1998 - Haroun Tazieff, French vulcanologist and geologist (b. 1914) *2001 - Filemon Lagman, Filipino Communist revolutionary (b. 1953) * 2001 - Fulgence Charpentier, Quebec journalist, editor and publisher (b. 1897) *2002 - Max Perutz, Austrian-born molecular biologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1914) *2005 - Lazar Berman, Russian pianist (b. 1930) * 2005 - Karl Haas, American radio presenter (b. 1913) *2007 - Lew Burdette, American baseball player (b. 1926) * 2007 - Len Hopkins, Canadian politician (b. 1930) * 2007 - Frankie Laine, American singer (b. 1913) * 2007 - Willye White, American athlete (b. 1939) Holidays and observances * Bob Marley Day in Rastafarianism (Jamaica and Ethiopia) * Waitangi Day (National Holiday) in New Zealand * Sami National Day (in Finland and Scandinavia) Liturgical feasts *Feast day of the following saints in the Roman Catholic Church (per the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints): **Saint Amand, Apostle of the Franks **Saint Vedastus **Saint Dorothea, patron saint of florists **Saint Paul Miki *In the Traditional Catholic Calendar it is the Feast day of: **Saint Titus * February 6 External links * BBC: On This Day * * On This Day in Canada ---- February 06